First STS LNG bunkering operation for Spain’s Bilbao port

The first liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering operation via a ship-to-ship method has taken place in the Spanish port of Bilbao.

LNG-fueled cement carrier, Ireland, received 90 cubic meters of the chilled fuel from the Oizmendi bunker vessel on February 3, according to a statement by the Spanish port.

This was the first time that such an operation had been carried out in the entire Atlantic Arc and the Mediterranean, the Bilbao port claims.

To remind, the 110m-long Ireland built by the Dutch shipbuilder Ferus Smit for JT cement also became the first vessel to bunker LNG in the port via a truck-to-ship method in March 2017.

On the other side, the Oizmendi, formerly known as Monte Arucas, was recently converted to a bunkering barge becoming Spain’s first LNG supply vessel. It has two 300-cbm LNG tanks installed onboard.

The conversion of the Monte Arucas forms part of a Basque region project that also includes adapting the BBG dock and regasification plant, and the design and construction of an LNG-powered tug.

The project is being developed by Itsas Gas, owned 49 percent by the Basque Energy Agency (EVE). The remaining shares in Itsas Gas are owned by two partners from the Basque maritime industry: Remolcadores Ibaizabal and Naviera Murueta, with a 25.5 percent stake, each.

The project is being co-financed by the EU through the Core LNGas Hive project. The EU contributed 4.85 million euros of the 9.7 million euros initially invested by Itsas Gas and its partners.